By Jim Bleyer Tampa’s leadership flunked its latest test Saturday at the University of South Florida. A March for Our Lives town hall discussion drew only a handful of candidates for Hillsborough County and the city of Tampa. Incumbent officeholders scored a zero. Likewise Republicans. The USF event is …
By Scott Myers, Contributor What if your brother-in-law offered you this investment opportunity? Participation in a deal that costs $51 million per year and returns $20 million per year. Would you say yes? Would you jump at the chance to be part of an investment group that will …
Yayoi Kusama, “Aftermath of Obliteration of Eternity,” 2009. Collection of the artist. Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts, Tokyo/Singapore; Victoria Miro, London; David Zwirner, New York. © Yayoi Kusama By Jim Bleyer As a ten-year-old in Matsumoto, Japan, Yayoi Kusama began to experience vivid hallucinations—flashes of light, auras, flowers, fabric patterns, dense …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay We posted here about the oddity of the transit tax hike petition PAC All for Transportation (AFT) to hand the Hillsborough County Supervisor Of Elections (SOE) thousands of petitions to validate but not provide payment to start the petition validation …
By Jim Bleyer Unveiling of plans for a shiny new $892 million stadium in Ybor City by the Tampa Bay Rays organization Tuesday struck out on the key question: a funding source. The presentation is seen by many—supporters, opponents, and skeptics alike—as an effort to gain converts. The …
By Jim Bleyer A year before a crazed shooter massacred five newsroom workers at the Annapolis Capital Gazette on June 28, Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn mused publicly about gunning down journalists. It made national headlines. Among the numerous media entities that reported on Buckhorn’s hate-fueled rhetoric: the Washington Post, …
By Tom Rask, Tampa Bay Guardian The Hillsborough petition effort underway to raise the sales tax hike to fund transit is looking very shaky. The petition itself violates state law, and the overall effort is sloppy in matters large and small. The effort also relies on a “leader” …
By Jim Bleyer The Castor Disaster is no longer a pilot; it is a full-fledged series that hopefully won’t be renewed by City of Tampa voters in 2019. Castor, the first openly racist mayoral candidate in recent memory, was hired by the City of Miami in 2016 to monitor …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay Is there something odd with the transit sales tax hike petition effort in Hillsborough County? A citizen (not grassroots) petition effort funded by deep pocketed downtown special interests, including Jeff Vinik and Frank Morsani who also own part of the Tampa Bay …
By Jim Bleyer The Florida Democratic Party is going all in on its marginalization of its progressive wing, risking its only statewide officeholder U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, any chance of recapturing the governorship, and pickup opportunities in the Florida Legislature. Ramifications …
By Jim Bleyer Craig Latimer sounds like an officeholder that won’t be seeking reelection in 2020. He’s served two terms not without controversy. His time is almost up. Worse, his recent actions, demeanor, and utterances prove he cannot be trusted to run the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections office …
By Scott Myers, Contributor On May 15, 2018 Jeff Eakins, Hillsborough County School District Superintendent, announced that he would be exploring a tax referendum to increase revenues for the Hillsborough County School District. On June 15, 2018 the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer certified a petition and established …
By Jim Bleyer A veteran Tampa political operative totally blew his cool and embarrassed himself after Florida House candidate Susan Valdes was videoed stumbling and bumbling over questions regarding her donors and would-be donors. She made those remarks Saturday at a meeting of the Hillsborough Hispanic Democratic Caucus. Victor DeMaio, …
By Jim Bleyer The proposed $15 billion Hillsborough County transit initiative is primarily designed to rescue two failing private-sector entities and bring to fruition a taxpayer subsidized ballpark for the Tampa Bay Rays. The fact that those bankrolling the petition effort are hiding behind a “non-profit,” tells voters all …
By Jim Bleyer The economically dying Tampa Bay Times, with former Sen. Bob Graham calling the shots on the board of the parent Poynter Foundation, continues to repeat unsubstantiated charges against a Political Action Committee (PAC) favoring gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum. This time the Times repeats a …
By Beth Eriksen Shoup, Contributor The Democratic Party of Florida, having already seen progressive support erode in several of the state’s most populous counties, continues to alienate a key voting bloc by accepting contributions from the predatory lending industry. Those companies, led by Tampa-based Amscot Financial, preys on low-income …
By Jim Bleyer I feel like Commissioner Gordon who resorts to sending up the bat signal in times of distress. And I’ve got plenty of company. The six candidates who have declared to run in 2019 for mayor of Tampa just cannot be the best a city of 385,000 has …
By Jim Bleyer Attorneys knowledgeable with civil rights law assert that Jane Castor’s admission of racial profiling under her regime as Tampa’s police chief opens up the city to a bevy of lawsuits. Damages could run into the millions if every victim of Castor’s “biking while black” targeting comes forward …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay Transportation planning and progress have been dysfunctional and elusive in Hillsborough County for over 20 years. After three failed sales tax initiatives, from the Committee of 99 to Moving Hillsborough Forward to GO Hillsborough, and multiple unfunded Long Range Transportation …
By Jim Bleyer With approximately $100 million in debt and operating nowhere near profitability, the Tampa Bay Times is in its death throes as a viable, traditional newspaper entity, Tampa Bay Beat has learned. The pension plan is in jeopardy. Assets have been mortgaged. Filing bankruptcy could very well …
